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Who's Who - Sir Charles Townshend

Sir Charles Vere Ferrers Townshend
(1861-1924) led the Anglo-Indian force lain siege in 1915-16 which finally
surrendered in humiliation on 29 April 1916.

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Coming from a military
background Townshend's army career prior to war in 1914 was distinguished.
He earned himself a "lucky" nickname following success commanding the
garrison at Chitral in 1895 (after which he was awarded the CB). To
this he added the DSO for his role in
Lord Kitchener's
Nile expedition in 1898.

With the British
declaration of war in August 1914 Townshend was appointed to command of the
Sixth Indian Division in Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq) in April 1915.

Reconfirming his pre-war
reputation for luck Townshend quickly engineered a spectacular success at
Amara followed by victory at Es Sinn. Recommending to
Commander-in-Chief Sir John Nixon a policy of consolidation he was instead
ordered to push on up the Tigris with the
capture of Baghdad in his sights.

Finding progress
increasingly hard going Townshend's poorly equipped force was defeated at
Ctesiphon in November 1915 and obliged to
retreat to Kut. His urgent
call for a relieving operation was quickly answered but defeated by the
Turks under Goltz.
Finally his small force surrendered on 29 April 1916.

Despite the humiliation of
defeat no initial blame was apportioned upon Townshend, least of all by his
men who admired him for the skill and resolve he demonstrated during the
retreat. Nevertheless criticism was soon voiced based upon Townshend's
apparent passiveness during the British attempt to relieve his force.

Considered an honoured
guest by his Turkish captors Townshend was treated with lavish hospitality;
meanwhile his 10,000 troops were largely subjected to barbaric treatment
(including homosexual rape). A remarkable two-thirds of this group
died while being marched into captivity.

Townshend assisted with the
negotiation of the Turkish armistice at
Mudros in October 1918 but his
reputation continued to suffer as news of the maltreatment of his force
spread. He died in some disgrace in 1924.

Click
here to read Townshend's official communiqué to his besieged garrison
dated 26 January 1916;
click
here to read his second dated 10 March 1916;
click
here to read his third dated 10 March 1916;
click here
to read the official Austrian report into the siege;
click here
to read a British memoir of the final days of the siege.

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